Isabel Ramos, BIT Beauty Intelligence (Barcelona), outlined the marketing opportunities at a recent industry event - the Cosmetics Consultants Europe group’s Open Academy in Barcelona.
“The only way to make products that make a difference is to really think from the beginning how to sell the products,” Ramos asserts.
Innovation: only counts if the product sells
“Sometimes it’s the last thing we think about - we’re so concerned with stability, safety and so on, that sometimes we forget that this product has to be sold,” observes Ramos.
She notes that while Innovation is at the forefront of formulators minds, it is meaningless without the market behind it: “You may have the best idea in the world, but if it never goes to market, it will never be considered an innovation.
“Our consumers know what they want, the specifications they look for - even if we don’t agree with them - so we need to be the one they want to choose from all the alternatives.”
Hidden & Visible Innovation
Ramos explains that there is a broad array of elements within the product formulation and supply chain journey which offer the opportunity for innovation, all of which can feed into the storytelling and marketing that ensures a product’s success with consumers.
Some of these elements are visible, she suggests, and some hidden, and its down to industry professionals working at every stage of the supply chain to communicate the innovative elements of their activities to feed into the ultimate marketing story of the product.
Some areas where innovation may not be immediately obvious are at the ingredients level - the creation and production of elements within the product - and in the testing stages - including novel safety tests or innovative models, for example, animal testing alternatives.
There is also visible innovaiton that can provide different storytelling that makes this product special, Ramos suggests, including formulas, packaging and business models.
“You can even innovate in the way you position the product,” she explains.
Ramos concludes that while sometimes it can be difficult to understand how efforts at the formulation and testing level can feed into the marketing story, she believes through the points highlighted that there are many ways to do this.
What is the Open Academy?
The CCE’S Open Academy first edition (16 October 2017) saw a series of eminent experts from across the industry Europe present on various hot topics.
Highlights include presentations on non-animal testing methods for next generation ingredients, software tools for formulation and regulatory affairs, and CPR, REACH and Brexit. Further information on the CCE can be found here.